Serve by Design

Last Monday was Senior’s Day at the Illinois State Fair. For several years now, Monique and I have leveraged our retirement age and the privilege of free admission for old folks! It was a beautiful midmorning as we entered the main gate with delightful anticipation and a little extra energy in our step. We knew the location of our favorites for food and exhibits! Our eyes were also alert to any available benches, along the way, for rest and people watching. This was our annual visit to the fair! It was a couple of hours later, after our visits to Vose Korndogs and the Pork Pavillion, that we had doubled back for a momentary respite in the Coliseum to watch the draft horse and pony show. As we sat there looking at some of the horses being groomed, I noticed what appeared to be a feat of physicality and creative achievement. One of the contestants was a cute older grade schoolgirl. She was curiously lying on her belly straddling the backside of a very large horse. While facing downward...

I have been using all methods of persuasion throughout my years as a church leader. It involves verbal and nonverbal communication in formal and informal settings. I have presented ministry ideas on paper, through email, texts and over the telephone. There have been numerous one-on-one meetings with key individuals, and there have been even more meetings with committees, teams and multiple groups covering tasks with diverse responsibilities. Credit: vectorstock.com The goal behind all this activity has been to facilitate collaboration and hopefully gain “buy-in” to ideas, action plans, implementation strategies, and the advancement of the organization’s mission. I have found this process both exhilarating and exasperating. It requires patience, support, and openness to divergent ideas. The latter has always been a particular challenge to me and to my impatience! But I have found all of this to be a necessary process for getting things done! I have been a student of communication all ...